Students will be charged £3,000 a year to study at Teesside University.

The controversial top-up fees will affect all those starting on full-time three-year courses from September 2006.

But as the university today announced financial help of up to £6,900 to meet the costs, student union bosses branded the charges as "a bitter pill".

And they described the package of bursaries and scholarships as "sugar-coating" top-up fees, which the union believes are a bad deal for students.

Beth Huntbach, education and welfare officer at the university's student union, said: "The student union has worked with the university to formulise the bursaries that will be distributed to students to ensure they are receiving a fair deal.

"However, it will be seen as sugar-coating what will be a very bitter pill for students.

"Top-up fees are something we lobbied very hard against, joint with the national union. We still believe they will be a detriment to students who, instead of choosing the course they would love to do, will be thinking 'can I afford it?'"

When top-up fees are introduced in 2006, the university will be charging full-time undergraduates on three-year courses £3,000 a year. They will not have to pay the fees until they earn more than £15,000.

Under the University of Teesside package, students whose family income is below £15,000 - an estimated 600 students - will get a bursary of £1,300 a year.

Those with a family income of between £15,000 and £25,000 will receive a bursary of £500 a year, benefiting 700 students.

First year undergraduates whose family incomes are over £25,000 a year will receive a "welcome grant" of £500, to be paid in three instalments over their first year. A total of 250 scholarships worth up to £1,000 a year will be given to students classed as high-achieving by their school or college.

But Miss Huntbach believes bursaries should be offered on the basis of the means of the individual student and not their family.

She said: "I didn't receive any funding from my parents under the old system and I had to support myself.

"One of the reasons for coming to Teesside was it was a cheaper option for me.

"If I had to pay £3,000 I would seriously consider whether or not university was the right option for me and I think many students are going to be thinking that."

Professor Graham Henderson, university vice-chancellor, said: "We want to make sure our students receive as much financial support from the university as possible when we start charging full-time fees of £3,000 from 2006.

"I believe that as a result of the measures we are proposing the new system will be fairer than the existing arrangements because it targets financial support at those who need it most.

"It also gets rid of the requirement for students to pay up-front tuition fees, which I think has been a barrier to many in the past.

"It also allows us to ensure that some financial support is provided to all our full-time students in their crucial first-year at university.

"And, equally important, it will enable us to make scholarships available to high-achieving students in those areas where the university has, or is developing, a national, or international reputation for its work."